loot

Meaning

1. Synonym of booty, goods seized from an enemy by violence, particularly (historical) during the sacking of a town in war or (video games) after successful combat.
2. Synonym of sack, the plundering of a city, particularly during war.
3. (colloquial) Any valuable thing received for free, especially Christmas presents.
4. (slang) Synonym of money.

plunder

stolen goods

stolen property

take by force

spoliate

abscond with

Frequency

Pronounced as (IPA)

/luːt/

Borrowed from Hindi लूट (lūṭ, “booty”), either from Sanskrit लोप्त्र (loptra, “booty, stolen property”) or लुण्ट् (luṇṭ, “to rob, plunder”). The figurative meaning developed in American English in the 1920s, resulting in a generalized meaning by the 1950s.